Hold Me, I'm a Fermata
by Spazzer Monkey
Summary: Fresh from a visit with his father and the Dark Lord, Draco Malfoy literally runs into the youngest Weasley, causing her potions ingredients to smash and combine.  Can they really be expected to rely on one another to get out of this mess?
1. Somedays

**Author's Note:**

**So, I first mentioned this story on my profile two years ago. Boy, the time sure flies. Although in the past, I've tried to make sure my chapters are nice and long before posting, I've realized that holding myself to standards like that make me not want to write; besides, I've read stories that have chapters so long I forget what happened at the beginning! So in this story, I've got distinct plans for each chapter, and intend to give you the story without too much of a delay. I've currently got 4 chapters written, a fifth on the way, and a full (basic) outline of each chapter extending through 5 parts, 26 chapters, and an epilogue. **

**Remember, reviews make authors happy.**

**DISCLAIMER: Although I dream, neither Harry Potter nor the songs by Regina Spektor belong to me. (All chapters are named after a RS song and contain an excerpt from that song).**

Chapter 1: Somedays

_Somedays aren't yours at all_

_They come and go_

_As if they're someone else's days_

_They come and leave you behind someone else's face_

_And it's harsher than yours_

_And it's colder than yours..._

This was turning out to be quite the lousy day for Ginny Weasley. First, her roommates woke her up at the crack of dawn, screeching about something or another (Ginny couldn't really bring herself to care), and when she saw that she still had a few hours before her first class, went back to sleep. Next thing she knew, she was rolling over, still drowsy, with a nagging sensation she was forgetting something. That _something_ turned out to be breakfast and her first class. Upon this realization, she sprinted out of bed and decided a quick _scourgify_ would have to do in place of a shower this morning. She didn't even realize that her socks were completely mismatched, one being an ankle sock and the other a knee-high, until she was already halfway to History of Magic.

Luckily for her, Binns barely looked up from his lecture when she slid into her seat nearly 20 minutes late, but her seatmate (a Ravenclaw boy named Derek who seemed to be a male version of Hermione) glared at her for the disruption. Ginny had been thinking she was in the clear, but as soon as the bell rang, dismissing the class, Binns floated over to her and began to drone on about how rude teenagers were these days, and how when he was still alive, someone who was five minutes early for class was punished for being tardy.

"Professor-" Ginny started, but stalled when Binns just kept on droning. She'd be late for her next class too, if he didn't shut up!

"...oh yes, in my day..." Binns just _kept talking_, never quite getting the hint, even when his next class started filing in. Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked in, and sent her a confused look. She merely shrugged and tried again.

"Please, Professor-my next class is Potions, if I'm late for that too, Snape will have me in detention for a month!"

"...teenagers and their lack of respect. Never would've called a Professor by his surname alone, no, sir!"

Ginny sighed and cast a quiet _tempus_ charm under the table, and nearly swore when she saw what time it was. She had to leave, fast, or she'd be strung up for sure.

"No disrespect intended, sir, but I must be getting to my next class. I'll see you here, tonight, 7 PM for a detention?"

Without waiting for him to respond, she raced out the door, heading toward the dungeons.

Draco Malfoy gracefully stepped out of the Head Student fireplace, glancing around to make sure Granger wasn't in the room. He didn't really care if she saw him arrive or not, but as he'd been gone for a few days, it would take a bit of intimidation to get her to back off and he just really didn't have time for that today. Besides, he knew she'd get curious as to where he was and he hadn't quite thought up an excuse yet.

He quickly dusted himself off and went up the stairs to his room, the portrait swinging open as he said the password. He only had a few minutes to change before he had to be leaving for the second class of the day-thanks to Father and the Dark Lord, he'd not only missed a whole weekend, but also his first class. It was only Potions though-Professor Snape would forgive him easily enough, circumstances what they were. Besides, it's not like he was Longbottom or anything-Draco could easily hold his own in that class, even if he were to miss a whole week.

He quickly pulled on a clean uniform and pulled a crisp, freshly ironed robe from his wardrobe and strode out his private entrance, which put him square in the second floor corridor. A convenient location when one wanted to get to classes quickly, but damned annoying between classes with all the traffic. Noting the emptiness of the halls, he figured he'd be a bit late for class, but he didn't really care. It was only Transfiguration, and that old bat McGonagall could bloody well do whatever she wanted to him-it wasn't as if he cared. He started up the corridor towards the stairs, but before he could get very far, a petite body turned a corner directly into his path and rammed into him.

"Oof!" she breathed upon impact, falling to the ground on top of her bag. Draco had managed to grab hold of the wall to steady himself, and was now glaring at the girl. He saw it was Weasley, and his scowl grew.

"Bloody hell, Weaselette, watch where you're going-not everyone's as durable as the boy-who-just-won't-die."

She glared at him and reached to pick up her bag and noticed it was smoking slightly.

"What the..." she questioned, opening the bag. Immediately, plumes of a gray-green smoke began pouring out, enveloping the two of them.

"What the hell did you do, Weasel?" Draco demanded as he felt his eyes start to water and he began feeling light-headed.

"My potions...supplies," she gasped, and her eyes rolled back as she fell to the ground. Draco gaped wordlessly at her for a moment before he, too was drawn into unconsciousness.


	2. Bon Idee

**Author's Note: So I thought that I'd just go ahead and give you two chapters right away; get people interested, you know. **

**Disclaimer: I've not written either Harry Potter nor the song—Characters by JK, song by Regina Spektor.**

Ch 2: Bon Idée

_Don't tell your secrets to anyone_

_Because ideas are vulnerable_

_As soon as you say your idea out loud_

_Then it can go and live on its own_

_And you will miss it oh so much_

_And you will wait for it's return_

_And you will wish it were your own_

_But ideas that left never come back home_

It was lucky for the two of them that Ginny crashed into Malfoy in a well-used corridor; otherwise, they might have lain there, prone, for hours, if not days. Instead, as soon as the bell rang indicating it was time for lunch, students began pouring down the stairs towards the Great Hall.

It was a group of three Hufflepuff girls who actually discovered them. Their class had gotten out early and they sat near the door, so they were the first ones out. As they came around the corner one of them tripped and when she swung her head around to see what caught her foot, the color drained from her face.

"Sara, go get a professor!" she told one of her friends, who ran off in the direction they came from. The two remaining girls then knelt by the prostrate bodies to try to figure out what happened. They soon discovered that one of the bodies was that of their Head Boy and jumped back, terrified of his wrath even when it was obvious he wouldn't be reacting to anyone anytime soon. The girls were beginning to panic-neither of them had ever seen anyone just laying in a hallway, unresponsive-were they alive? Dead? They didn't want to risk touching the victims, in case whatever had gotten to them was transmissible, but they needed to check the vitals as well. The girls just looked at each other, emotion warring in their eyes; the want to be helpful battling the need to be cautious. They eventually decided to wait it out and make sure no one else bothered them, which would prove difficult soon, as they heard the thundering of footsteps as all the classes above them were dismissed.

"Kate, Whitney, what is going on here?" The girls whipped around and saw their Head Girl standing behind them, trying to see what was on the floor just on the other side of where they stood.

"Hermione! You have to help!" The girls quickly related what they had found, and by the time they finished, Sara had returned, leading Professor McGonagall. She sent Whitney ahead to the Infirmary to get Madame Pomfrey, and quickly went to work, trying to wake the pair on the ground. Hermione stepped closer and gasped when she saw that it was Ginny and Malfoy lying there as if dead.

"_Ennervate!_ _Rescucio_! _Novo compleo_!" McGonagall's face fell with each attempt. "I don't know what's the matter with them. Regardless, it seems as though they're just unconscious. Let's get them up to the Hospital Wing."

With that, she cast a feather-light charm on Draco and lifted him up, but as soon as he was separated from Ginny by an arm's length, the two of them let out piercing screams, the first sign of life either had offered. McGonagall quickly set him back down, and the screaming stopped. She tried the charm on Ginny next, but the results were the same.

She sighed then, and looked over at Hermione. "They just have to be difficult, don't they?"

Hermione let out a nervous laugh at that, but straightened up when McGonagall's face became serious again. "Ms. Granger, I'll need your assistance. I'll charm Mr. Malfoy, you can take Ms. Weasley, and we'll have to choreograph our movements to the hospital wing." She noticed that Kate was still loitering, curious but being useful by sending off other people who were passing by and craning their necks to see the incident.

"Ms. Stavely, will you please walk ahead of us to the Infirmary to clear traffic, and once there, alert Madame Pomfrey that we'll need a full-size bed to fit both of them?" Kate nodded swiftly, and waited for the two women to gather the unconscious students to them before marching off towards the hospital wing, every now and then yelling "Keep moving, nothing to see here!"

Draco groaned and opened his eyes, then blinked and rubbed them, yes RUBBED them, to make sure his eyes weren't going bad on him.

"It won't help," he heard Weasley say. "I've been trying that for awhile now. It doesn't change."

The two of them were propped up against a rocky crag in what looked to be a pretty drab, gray landscape. He noticed that Weasley wasn't wearing her school robes. Instead, she was wearing what looked to be a pair of black track pants, a light blue tank top, and trainers. He looked down at himself and saw his clothes had been changed as well. Instead of his uniform, he was wearing black slacks, a white tank top with a pale green dress shirt over it, buttoned only halfway. The sleeves were rolled up, but he swiftly fixed that when he noticed that his Mark was visible. It didn't appear that Weasley had noticed though, so he instead focused on the landscape. Although the land seemed barren, what was truly spectacular was the sky. It looked like one of those muggle tie-dyed shirts, with the colors and the patterns swirling together. The sky above them was an iridescent green, though in the distance, he could see that it changed to a sort of dark purple.

"What did you do to me?" he demanded, turning to Ginny. "Where have you taken me?"

Ginny snorted. "If I knew that, do you think I'd still be here? All I know is that I was running late for Potions thanks to Binns, and I ran into you. I fell on my bag, and it started smoking. I opened it up, accidentally breathed in the fumes, I guess you did too, and here we are. Poof, like magic."

Draco fought the urge to roll his eyes. "Did it ever occur to you to store your potions ingredients in the classroom? Or perhaps in Unbreakable Glass?"

The embarrassed flush that graced her cheeks told him everything he needed to know.

"Merlin, Weaselette, you mixed a bloody POTION in your bag when you fell, and we're stuck in who knows where until who knows when, and all thanks to your clumsiness!" With that, he stood and stormed off towards the horizon, where they could see the purple sky rippling.

Ginny let out a quick curse and stood, racing after him.

"Bloody hell, Malfoy, you can't just go running off! We don't know where we are, but we got here together-odds are, we'll need to leave here together."

He snorted but slowed down so that she could match his pace.

"So, where do you think we are?" she asked, conversationally. He ignored her.

"It seems like a pretty desolate place, but what sort of place has a green sky? It can't be a real place, can it?"

Draco stiffened, and his eyes locked on the sky, straight ahead. They had neared the point where the two colors of the sky mixed, and in the swirling, there were areas scattered around which looked like miniature whirlpools. In the center of these, there was an image-a galleon symbol, Hogwarts castle, even Harry Potter.

"Bloody hell, what is going on?" Ginny heard Draco swear under his breath.

Madame Pomfrey considered herself an easy-going woman-sweet, but able to be firm with students. This latest situation, however, pushed at even her generous boundaries. Her hospital wing was currently cramped with the two unconscious students, plus eight frantic Weasleys, two intimidating Malfoys, two concerned Heads of House, not to mention Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Pansy Parkinson, and Blaise Zabini. What made it worse was that all of them, minus Narcissa Malfoy and the two Professors, were all clamoring to be heard above one another, despite the fact that they were all basically asking the same questions. What had happened? Will they be okay? And then the million-galleon question, when will they wake up?

Finally, she'd had enough. She straightened from where she was bent over Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Weasley. The two students were currently laying so close to one another that if they were lucid they'd be cuddling.

"QUIET!" she said, and it was only when she straightened up to admonish them that she noticed Professor Dumbledore observing quietly from a corner. "Now, I'm sure that Ms. Weasley and Mr. Malfoy would appreciate your concern if they actually knew you were here, but as it stands, they have fairly blocked out the outside world. Anyone who isn't a parent or a professor needs to leave, NOW. If anything happens, we'll find you, but for now, you're in the way."

No one seemed to be moving, so Snape took it upon himself to glare at them and barked, "Move!"

With the slightly veiled threat, the room cleared of the ten unneccessary people and Madame Pomfrey breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Severus." She received a terse nod in response, and turned to the anxious gathering.

"Now, I'm sure you'd all like to know what happened here."

The four parents all watched the nurse, waiting for her proclamation, eyes anxious for a tidbit. Only Lucius Malfoy seemed as though he could wait. Indeed, it seemed as though he really couldn't care less.

"It seems that somehow, Miss Weasley's bag dropped, shattering the bottles which held some of her potions ingredients. From the trace residue that Severus tested, it seems those ingredients are-"

Here, Snape interrupted. "Pre-shredded boomslang skin, salamander tears, powdered duckweed flowers, Elven rakeweed seeds, and a steeped solution of newt eyes and phoenix dander which the sixth-year students prepared in advance last week. Although I believe that the rakeweed seeds were inert, the other ingredients combined quickly and potently, creating a mist which trapped the two students within their minds."

Lucius spoke. "The _Fevralis_ mist."

Snape nodded. "Yes, the _Fevralis_ mist." At the blank looks he got from the three other parents and Professor McGonagall, he continued. "When inhaled, the _Fevralis_ mist traps its victims inside their own minds. They can usually be woken after administering the antidote potion. However, if more than one person inhales the mist from a specific batch, their minds meld. They combine, and it is up to the individuals to figure out how to escape their minds. To use the antidote at this point in time would forcibly separate the two, and inevitably causes insanity due to the fractured mind, and in some cases, causes death."

Mrs. Weasley began sobbing at this news and buried her face in her husband's chest. "My baby's gone!" she wailed. "I never got to say goodbye..."

"Now, now, Molly, this is no reason for hysterics," Dumbledore said gently. "Simply because we cannot help them does not mean that your daughter and young Mr. Malfoy are at a loss. They are both intelligent beings, and from reports of other victims of this mist, there are enough clues along the way for them to figure out how to escape."

"Dumbledore, is that all?" Lucius Malfoy's voice cut through the emotion. Dumbledore looked from Molly to Lucius with a pained look in his eye, trademark twinkle conspicuously absent.

"You may leave, Lucius. I will floo you with any updates." Lucius gave Dumbledore a curt nod and strode from the room, Narcissa sniffling slightly but still following in his wake.

"This is crap."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Thank you so much for your riveting commentary, Malfoy. I'm so glad to hear that you've been taught how to articulate your thoughts from your Slytherin cronies."

Draco glared at her. "Seriously, Weasley, this is crap. We've been wandering this god-forsaken place for hours, and it doesn't change!"

This was true, to an extent. Once they spotted the swirling amalgamation where the two colors of sky met up, they decided to follow the path it left. They took note of the various images that cropped up in the whirling eddies, and noticed that after about a half hour of walking, they were exactly where they had left started, at the galleon symbol. Then, Ginny had stayed put while Draco went forward, and sure enough, half an hour later, he came strolling up behind her. After that, they decided to try taking a perpendicular path and turned right, cutting through the purple-sky area.

This hemisphere, for lack of better term, was much more pleasant than the green-sky area. Not only was the sky a shimmering purple, but the whole thing seemed like a golden wheat field. Instead of wheat though, it was a soft material, yarn-like, standing up and dancing in the slight breeze which went through the place. The most surprising attribute though, was a constant stream of quiet piano music drifting around them. Ginny had thought it sounded familiar, but couldn't place it. She shrugged off the thought as they crossed through the fields, and noticed that straight ahead they could see green sky. As they closed in on the boundary, they spotted the image of a house-elf, which was located about halfway around the circle from the galleon symbol. This is where the present conversation is finally taking place.

Ginny decided to change the topic. "Where do you think we are? This doesn't match anything I've ever read about. And those weird images!"

Draco nodded. "It seems vaguely familiar though, well, at least the green side. I agree though, what the hell is up with those images?"

Ginny's eyes shot to Draco with this last bit. "What? You actually agree with me on something? I never thought I'd see the day."

"Neither did I, that's for sure," Draco agreed again, scowling. 

"You sure seem to be talking more than usual, you seem more civil. Are you sick?" Ginny tried to joke, but she wasn't sure if this was exactly a smart idea.

"Honestly? I have no idea what is bloody wrong with me. This place is affecting me, I think. It's making me say what is reality rather than what I wish to say. I can't even choose to not answer. I'm not sure if I'd be able to lie if I wanted to, even a minor one." Draco seemed as though he really did not want to be admitting this.

Ginny pondered this for awhile. "My name is Ginny Weasley, I'm the youngest of seven, and from one of the poorest pure-blood families in Britain." She gasped, to which Draco merely raised a curious eyebrow.

"I tried to lie," she explained. "What I wanted to say was 'My name is Hermione Granger, I'm an only child and I'm muggleborn.'" She thought a bit. "Clearly, we're allowed to explain admitted lies, we're just not able to actually tell them. Try it-try to say something completely ludicrous. Something like 'I'm Draco Malfoy and my shit doesn't stink.' Just try it!"

Draco smirked at her. "My name is Draco Malfoy and my shit doesn't stink." His smirk just grew wider as he saw Ginny's mouth drop, incredulous. "Seriously, Weasley, haven't you ever heard of the Defaegus charm? My mother had it cast on me when I was in nappies, it doesn't really wear off. Merlin, you'd have thought your mother would know it, with seven children."

She just glowered at him. "Prat."


	3. Poor Little Rich Boy

_**Author's Note: **__I just wanted to say a huge resounding THANK YOU for the great response this story has had so far! Sorry I've been bad about updating—I figured no one would read it, so what I had written already was good enough. After all your reviews and story alerts, I got self-conscious; it had to be perfect._

_I hope this chapter is up to your expectations!_

Ch. 3: Poor Little Rich Boy

_Poor little rich boy, all the couples have gone_

_You wish that they hadn't, you don't wanna be alone_

_But they wanna kiss and they got homes of their own_

_Poor little rich boy all the couples have gone, they've gone, they've gone_

_And you don't love your girlfriend_

_You don't love your girlfriend_

_And you think that you should but she thinks that she's fat_

_But she isn't but you don't love her anyway_

_And you don't love your mother_

_And you know that you should_

_And you wish that you would_

_But you don't anyway_

"You know, Malfoy, I think I've figured it out," Ginny said from where she was resting on the purple side of the divide. Without caring much if he was paying attention, she continued. "I think we're in us."

"What the bloody hell are you gabbing on about, Weasley?" Malfoy's trademark drawl came to her from where he was leaning up against one of the gray rocks on the green side.

"Seriously, Malfoy, it only makes sense. The purple side is me, and the green side is you. Why else would we feel so comfortable on our respective sides?"

He raised an eyebrow at her. "You're basing this theory on the fact that I feel more comfortable sitting up against a rock and you feel more comfortable laying down in yarn?"

She grinned for a moment. "Well that, and you know the piano music over on this side? I finally recognized it-it sounds like me." He gestured for her to continue. "I'm assuming you know what happened in my first year, with the Chamber of Secrets? I'm sure your father told you all about it."

She waited a bit, and at his nod, she continued. "After first year, what with being possessed and all, I had a lot of nightmares and flashbacks, but I found I could calm myself down, you know, control and prevent them with music, so I taught myself how to play piano. The music playing over here sounds like my style when I'm just messing around."

He pondered this for a moment. "That does make sense, I suppose. That also explains why your side is all soft and mine is tough-differences in our personalities, if nothing else. You may be on to something, Weasley."

"So, why do you think there's a giant galleon symbol in the sky, if we're in our minds?"

"How in the bloody hell am I supposed to know that, Weasley? Maybe it's because you truly wish you could have as much money as the Malfoy family does," Draco sneered.

"Seriously, Malfoy, is money all you think about?" Ginny questioned. "Money is not everything. Sure, I can't go out and buy everything when I want it, but that's made me be able to pick what is truly important, it's taught me how to work hard to get what I want, and it's shown me how amazing it can be when that all pays off. What has money taught you?"

Draco stood up and craned his neck to look at the symbol in the sky. "Money is everything to a Malfoy. We owe our prestige, our power, even our genes to our fortune. Without it, we would not be who we are as a clan. Although I've never had to 'work hard' for what I want, I..." he faltered, still looking at the sky.

"What is it?" Ginny asked, moving her eyes from Draco to the symbol in the sky. It had begun to fade and the tendrils of green and purple which were encircling it began to loosen and draw back into their respective sides. She stood and moved near him.

"I think we need to talk about the images, it makes them disappear," he said. "Anyway, although I've never had to work hard for items, that doesn't mean I don't know what it means to have desires withheld. I am able to appreciate those things which have no cost even more, such as my allies in Slytherin, or my position as Head Boy, which I earned completely by myself with my grades."

Ginny pondered this. "So, I suppose you're not such a spoilt brat after all, are you?" She grinned and stuck out her hand. "Truce about money? I won't hassle you about being a poor little rich boy and you don't give me shite about being broke?"

Draco stared at her proffered hand for a moment and nodded, taking her hand. "Truce."

With that, they heard a weird sucking sound from above them and saw that the symbol had completely disappeared and the two colors of sky were rushing to fill the gap which it had previously filled, the "whirlpool" completely gone.

"You know," Draco said. "I think this might be our key to escape. As much as I loathe the thought, I think we need to understand each other's position on all of these images and only then will we be able to get home."

Ginny nodded. "Well, should we get started then?"

~ooOoo~

"WHAT?"

Madame Pomfrey winced as she heard the shriek that was let out by the group of students. After Draco and Ginny's parents had been informed of the situation, she agreed to explain to their friends. Pansy snorted.

"Figures a Weasley wouldn't be able to afford Unbreakable Bottles." Harry had to hold Ron back from lunging at her, but all three Gryffindor students sent scathing glares her direction.

Dumbledore stood and held out his hands, effectively stilling the commotion. "You heard Madame Pomfrey. Yes, young Mr. Malfoy and Miss Weasley are trapped, but it should by no means be permanent. I have complete faith that they will be able to discover the secret to their entrapment and free themselves. In the meantime, Miss Granger, I will be appointing one of the seventh year prefects to assist you with Head duties until Mr. Malfoy is fit to resume them. Now, if you will excuse me, I will go fetch him and alert him to his temporary promotion." With that, Dumbledore turned and strode out of the Hospital Wing, leaving the Gryffindor and Slytherin students alone in the foyer.

"Poor Ginny," Ron said, sitting down with his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands. Hermione sat beside him and draped an arm over his shoulders.

"It'll be okay," she soothed.

"Yeah, mate, Ginny can take care of herself," Harry added. "She's tough; she won't let that git get away with anything."

~ooOoo~

_Thanks to kitty00, MissMyrtlemay, and hanako for your lovely reviews, and to the 5 of you who put this story on their alerts lists! However, if you want your name printed as thanks, you need to sign a review!_


	4. Better

**Warning: Some strong language.**

Chapter 4: Better

_If I kiss you where it's sore_

_If I kiss you where it's sore_

_Will you feel better, better, better_

_Will you feel anything at all_

_Will you feel better, better, better_

_Will you feel anything at all _

"This is shite."

Ginny rolled her eyes at the comment; after all, she'd heard commentary of that nature for days. At least it felt like days. Time didn't really pass in this place, at least not in any measureable fashion. There wasn't even a sun in the sky, just a general brightness. Of course, neither had materialized with watches or datebooks or even their wands, so keeping track of the time was nigh upon impossible.

Unfortunately, that little train of thought only ate up about eight seconds of time, so she was still bored and still listening to Draco complain. Letting out a short sigh of frustration, she sat up abruptly from her nest of yarn.

"Seriously, Malfoy, I know. We've already talked about the easy topics, and neither of us wants to talk about the hard ones. However, we're both bored senseless, so we need to do SOMETHING."

She stood then and walked over to the rock he was sitting on and poked him in the arm, surprised when he hissed in pain.

"Don't," he said sharply, pulling his arm away. Ginny, never being one to listen to stuck-up spoiled-rotten prats, poked him again, to have the same reaction.

"What is it?"

She knew that if they were at Hogwarts she wouldn't get an answer unless, of course, you counted a skillfully cast _Conjunctivitus_. However, they were in Hippie-Swirly World (Ginny admitted, the name needed some work), and he couldn't just _not_ respond.

"A mark of honor." Ginny could see that he had thought that answer out carefully.

"Show me," she urged. "Please, Draco, may I see?"

Ginny had a pretty educated guess as to what he was hiding there on his arm, but there was definitely a corner of her heart that was hoping he was referring to a scar or school pride tattoo or something, as long as it wasn't a Dark Mark. She held her breath as he swore under his breath and shoved his sleeve to his elbow, baring the stark black tattoo against alabaster skin. She unconsciously bent closer to get a good look, reaching out with fingertips toward but carefully not touching it.

Swallowing heavily, she caught his eyes. "Why? Draco, I know you're an insensitive bastard, but bloody hell, why would you go and join up with him?"

His eyes fell shut and he turned his face away, pushing himself down off of his perch and pulled his sleeve back into position. He started walking down the edge of his hemisphere, not even looking to see if Ginny was following. Of course she was, and she managed to catch up to him after only a few steps.

"I figure that if we have to talk about this," he began, "We may as well go to the Dark Lord's icon, that way we know when we can drop it."

"Draco, we don't…" she started, but was cut off.

"Yes, we bloody well do have to talk about this. I don't fucking want to, I'm fucking sick of having to fucking explain myself to you, but the sooner we get all of these fucking topics over with, the sooner I'm done with you."

She stopped in her tracks while he kept storming forward, shell-shocked by his violent reaction. Hell, she knew it was a touchy subject for them both, but never once had she seen him lose his temper like that. She took a few deep breaths to calm down and moved to catch up to him when she saw something moving out of the corner of her eye. She turned toward the movement and let out a squeak. Draco kept moving, but whirled around when the squeak turned into a yell.

"MALFOY!" She was pointing toward a rocky outcropping on his side, but he couldn't see anything. Rolling his eyes, he retraced his steps until he was standing beside her again and could see what she was yelling about. His eyes grew wide when he saw what was unmistakably (and inexplicably) a Death Eater gliding across the plateau. Ginny came to her senses and turned and ran for the safety of her yarn-grass, but Draco was frozen to the spot. She couldn't tell if he was scared, holding his ground, or simply waiting to converse with the Death Eater, but frankly, she didn't care that much; she was more concerned with hiding. She had no wand, no way of protecting herself, so therefore had zero interest in playing hero. Once safely ensconced in her field, she parted the yarn just enough that she could watch the goings-on.

The Death Eater had made it to Malfoy, who still hadn't budged, but she thought she might have noticed a bit of shaking on his part. Slowly and silently, the Death Eater reached one cloaked hand into the breast of his robes and retrieved his wand. It leisurely took aim at Malfoy and this seemed to be what made him sit up and take notice, for the shaking stopped, and he turned tail and ran along the join-line. The Death Eater flew after him, and after a brief internal debate, Ginny ran after as well. When she caught up, the Death Eater had Draco curled in a ball on the ground, alternatively screaming and crying for mercy. Ginny watched for a moment, waiting for Malfoy to rise up and fight back, or for the Death Eater to back off, but quickly came to the realization that the only thing that would stop the attack would be for Malfoy to be dead or comatose. Since neither of those conditions were conducive to her escaping this hell-hole, Ginny made a decision.

It would be up to her, and her alone, to rescue Draco.

~ooOoo~

"Madame Pomfrey! MADAME POMFREY!"

The nurse came quickly when she heard Ms. Parkinson screeching and stopped beside the bed that held Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Weasley. Malfoy had begun to shake, his features scrunching up, clearly in pain. He was letting out whimpers and groans and couldn't seem to decide if he wanted to be in the fetal position or stretched out convulsing. Pansy Parkinson was standing at his side, trying to hold his hand, but it kept getting pulled from her grasp.

"Back away, Ms. Parkinson," she said offhandedly, as she tried to figure out what to do. If a normal student was having a nightmare, she'd wake him. That obviously wouldn't work here, so she'd have to be creative.

"_Accio_ Dreamless Sleep!" she said, and when she had caught it, she carefully opened Malfoy's mouth and poured a few drops onto his tongue. She'd seen that work in comatose patients; just enough Dreamless Sleep could sometimes calm the nightmares. However, Malfoy continued to shake and scream.

"_Ennervate_!" No such luck, not that she'd had much faith that it would work.

"_Aguamenti_!" Now she had a writhing, screaming, soaking wet unconscious student. Great.

She then put her hands on Malfoy's shoulders and tried restraining him; he just screamed louder. She tried shaking him, and that only made the convulsions worse.

By this time, a small crowd had gathered; the Trio and Blaise had joined Pansy and Madame Pomfrey and were watching, trying to offer up suggestions.

"Try a loud noise, that always startled me out of sleep as a kid," Ron suggested. Hermione only rolled her eyes.

"Seriously, Ron, if that worked, don't you think his screams would've woken him up by now?"

"Isn't there a spell to make him gotta piss? That always wakes ME up!" Blaise decided to chime in then.

"Won't work," Madame Pomfrey said. "They've got spells taking care of all that."

They were drawn out of their discussion by new movement from the bed, however. Ginny, who had been laying flat on her back beside Draco, their arms touching, was now on her side, facing him, with one arm thrown casually across his chest. His convulsions slowed down to quivering, and the screams dampened until only quiet groans and whimpers were heard.

"Seriously, Draco, really?" Pansy sneered, only to earn a glare from Harry.

They watched as Ginny practically snuggled with the boy she was trapped with, until Ron got fed up.

"That's it, this is bollocks, he's done crying!" He stormed to the bedside and grabbed Ginny, rolling her back onto her back. "I don't care if he's in pain; my sister is not going to _cuddle_ that git!"

"No, Ron!" Hermione scolded, seizing his wrist and pulling him from his sister's side. Draco's whimpering grew louder again, so she gingerly reached down and replaced Ginny's arm around his waist. The three Gryffindors and two Slytherins all watched in dismay as the shaking and whimpering ceased and the unconscious duo fell into a mutual state of relaxation.

~ooOoo~

Internally, however, Ginny's rescue of Draco was only mildly impressive. She snuck back over to his side of the world, found a roughly grapefruit-sized stone, and clobbered the Death Eater over the head with it. It hadn't even noticed her presence, and dissolved away into a puff of smoke once hit, despite feeling incredibly solid under the rock. Draco was still curled on the ground groaning and quite obviously not going anywhere anytime soon, at least not under his own speed. Cursing her lack of a wand for what must be the twelfth time in the last minute, she grabbed him by the armpits and heaved.

Twenty minutes later, Draco started coming more to attention, and noticed that he was lying on a pile of yellow yarn, with soothing piano melodies twisting through his brain. He sat up slowly and looked around, seeing Ginny sitting only a few feet away, a concerned look gracing her features.

"The hell happened?" He managed to get out the one sentence before laying back on the yarn, exhausted and aching from whatever the hell it was that had gotten hold of him.

"I don't know exactly," Ginny began, "but I do know that it didn't give a flying rat's arse that I was there." She told the whole story, not that there was much to tell, and at the end, noticed that Malfoy was nodding resignedly.

"I know what it was," he explained. "It was a nightmare. You said it yourself, back when we first got here. We're trapped in us. Well, that thing is trapped in me. Has been since I can remember. Some children are haunted by bogeymen, but the lucky children of the Dark Lord's followers know that there are scarier things out there. It didn't care about you because it literally did not know you existed—I think you were able to destroy it for the same reason. It was impossible for a nightmare to be dreamed by two different people, so when you proved to it irrefutably that you were real and existed, it no longer could."

~ooOoo~

_I just wanted to give a big "Thanks!" to those of you who reviewed: missmyrtlemay, Ava-Potter gal, HinaLyka, and Hanako. And also, thanks to all of you who put this story on your favorites or your alerts; however, please remember that reviews make the world go 'round! _


	5. On the Radio

**Reminder, Harry Potter & all the characters referenced belong to JK Rowling, and the song is Regina Spektor. Basically, not mine.**

**I wanted to give a big, resounding "Thanks!" to Elena (eterna-romantica03) for her help with Draco's viewpoint; it's why it's been so long since I've updated. Here's a nice long chapter to make up for that.**

Chapter 5: On The Radio

_No, this is how it works_

_You peer inside yourself_

_You take the things you like_

_And try to love the things you took_

_And then you take that love you made_

_And stick it into some_

_Someone else's heart_

_Pumping someone else's blood_

_And walking arm in arm_

_You hope it don't get harmed_

_But even if it does_

_You'll just do it all again_

"Why haven't they woken up yet?"

A few heads rose at the sound of Molly Weasley's broken voice. It was a Saturday morning, a few weeks after the incident had occurred. All of Ginny's family was in the room with her and Malfoy, with Molly sitting directly beside her daughter.

The room stayed silent after the matriarch's question; it seemed no one had an answer for her. The hope they had all had at the beginning was slowly dissipating. Arthur and Lucius had even met to discuss long-term care for the pair. After all, should this last much longer, the infirmary of their school really wasn't the best place for the pair of students.

The discussion hadn't gone well. Lucius insisted on having Draco at his home, and if "the blood-traitor" had to be with him, so be it, but no conscious Weasley would ever step foot inside his manor. Arthur suggested the seemingly-appropriate St. Mungo's, but apparently, their "sub-standard care" and "bias towards muggle-lovers" was intolerable for a Malfoy.

It all went downhill when Lucius suggested trying the antidote. He seemed genuinely surprised at Arthur's rage. Apparently not everyone thought having an insane or dead child was preferable to having one forever bound to a mortal enemy.

~ooOoo~

Draco was exhausted. He and Ginny had finally decided to just get it over with, discuss all of the remaining topics, but of course it couldn't be easy. There had been a good dozen pictures when they first arrived in the world, and at the time of the decision, there were four left: Harry Potter, Lord Voldemort, Dumbledore, and a picture of two people _in flagrante delicto_. There was no wonder they'd saved those four for last. The problem was they couldn't agree which to talk about first.

Ginny thought the best way to pick a topic was to do so at random.

"Okay, Malfoy, here's how we'll do it. We walk out into the middle of your section until we can't see any of the pictures, I'll spin you around a few times, and we'll start walking in whatever direction you pick." If his raised eyebrow caught her attention, she didn't say anything. He sighed and started walking.

Of course, once they got to approximately the middle of his section (he supposed she chose it because his was easier to cross, no yarn-wheat and all), he put his foot down at being spun around in a circle like some drunken muggle at a stag party. Instead, he threw a small stone up in the air, and once it landed, they headed the direction it bounced.

Ginny looked a bit dejected at not getting to see Draco wobbly from being spun, but started off in the direction that the stone had indicated.

The first picture they got to was Voldemort's.

"No. I'm not starting off this…_thing_…by talking about him," Ginny said. Draco rolled his eyes.

"All right, then, what one DO you want to start with?" He was looking at her with disbelief. After all, it was she who had been so determined to get them talking, to get them out of this place, and now here she was, actively avoiding it.

"Let's go…" she trailed off, then pivoted and pointed. "That way."

He just sighed and followed.

~ooOoo~

Four hours later, Ginny had bypassed two more icons. First they had come across the Dumbledore icon, but Draco shot that down.

"If we can't talk about my Lord first, we certainly can't talk about yours," he stated with a grimace, and set off at a diagonal across the yarn-fields.

Next, they had come across the icon of the couple. Whereas Voldemort's visage was snarling and Dumbledore's was waving and had twinkling eyes, this couple was a bit more…active. Ginny looked at it and blushed fiercely.

"I guess we're going to talk about Harry, then," she said, looking anywhere except at Draco.

"Fine. It's that way," he said, pointing, relieved she had finally picked one. They must've walked nearly 10 miles by then.

They decided to walk across Draco's side. Although it did have the risk of more of those Death Eater nightmares, now that they knew how to defeat them, they weren't such a problem. They'd also discovered that running like crazy to Ginny's side seemed to make them vanish.

As they walked, they started talking.

"Draco," Ginny began, "what do you think it will be like when we get out?"

He glanced her way. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, how long have we been gone? Do you think our parents are freaking out?"

He snorted. "My parents do not 'freak out.'" She smacked him lightly on the shoulder.

"You know what I mean!" She grinned. "It feels like we've been here forever. What if we have? What if we get back and we're eighty? Or what if we get back and it's only been seconds? It'll be so weird."

"Ginny, stop worrying. It'll be fine."

He was finally getting used to the fact that this world made him say what was actually on his mind. For awhile, easily through the first four or five topics, he hated it. It made him weak. Draco had always hidden behind a mask of words and bravado, and here, that was stripped away from him. He felt vulnerable, and that was a position no Malfoy could stand being in. It was only when he realized that the situation was the same for Ginny that he had relaxed a bit. He realized that she hid behind her wit and her grins just as much as he did behind his scowls and sarcasm. They had even begun talking about things irrelevant to their release. Once, he woke up after being attacked by a nightmare to find her asleep and cuddling him. She woke up shortly after he did, blushing to her roots. Neither mentioned the incident since.

"Draco," she began again. "What will…"

Draco waited for her to finish, but after a few moments, spoke up. "'What will' what?"

She braced herself. "What will we be like after we get out?" He looked at her confused.

"I mean," she continued. "I really like talking to you. God, I never thought I'd say that, _thank you mind-world_, but it's true. I know it's just this place, but I can talk to you about anything, and I like that. I know that here, even if you're going to judge me, I hear it, it's not kept silent. That's all I ask for."

He thought about her words for a few long minutes as they kept making their way to the Potter icon.

"I don't know, Ginny," he said at last. "In here, we have no choice. Out there, we have friends, allies, family to talk to, who are expecting us to be something. Something we are, something we aren't, I don't know yet. But I do know what my father would say if he found out I was…friends with a Weasley. Even if we can stand to look at each other once we're out, I don't know if we should."

"I suppose you're right," she said, somewhat dejected. She looked forward again and spotted Harry's icon in the distance. "Looks like we're almost there."

They walked the last few hundred meters in silence, and once they reached the icon, set about making themselves comfortable. After all, when one's having a discussion they know is going to be awkward and unpleasant, why should their bums hurt too?

"So, Draco," Ginny started, seeing he wasn't going to, "why exactly don't you like Harry?"

Draco sighed. He knew this discussion was going to be down to him talking; after all, he knew damn well why everyone in the whole bleeding world fawned at Potter's feet. He understood their reasoning, just didn't agree with it. However, to be the odd one out usually took some explaining.

"Did Potter ever tell you how we met?"

Ginny shook her head. "He said you were a git, but that was the extent of it."

"We were in Diagon Alley, getting fitted for our robes. I was trying to make polite conversation, but he seemed somewhat backwater and rude, like I'd angered him somehow. Hell, I probably did, but I just was trying to make a new friend.

"Next time I saw him was on the train. He was sitting with your brother and some other kids, and I'd come to see if the rumors were true, if Harry Potter was really on the train. I offered him my friendship formally then, but he shot me down flat in front of my mates. I was humiliated! Here was Harry Potter, rejecting the alliance with the Malfoy clan for the Weasleys. I vowed then that he would regret that."

"So," Ginny interjected. "Your little rivalry was all because he met my brother? Is that what you're saying?"

Draco snorted. "When you put it that way, it sounds petty and stupid, but I guess so, yeah."

"Haven't you ever thought of being, you know, the bigger person? Set it all aside and just move on?"

"Malfoys don't give up, Ginny," Draco stated, staring off into the distance. "Besides, once my father knew about Potter scorning me, I had to send him regular updates on what I could do to undermine him. Anything I could do; insults, sabotage, spreading rumors, you name it. It was more about the fact that he disrespected me than anything actually personal."

"That's awful." Draco's eyes shot to Ginny's face. She continued, "You were eleven! A kid! And there's your dad, making you work his stupid plot. But really, Harry's a good guy; he's good at looking past what people have done in the past and seeing what they're doing now. I bet if you laid off him for awhile, he'd do the same, especially once he saw it was mostly your father's doing, not yours."

A loud slurping sound drew their attention upwards as the icon of Harry disappeared.

"Huh," Ginny said, not-so-eloquently. "I didn't think we were done, but I guess we understand each other pretty well now."

Draco smirked. "Guess so. So, to save some time, do you want to just go in a circle? We can do Dumbledore next if you want."

Ginny heaved herself to her feet and smiled. "Dumbledore it is, then!"

~ooOoo~

Madame Pomfrey's head jerked to the side as she reacted to an unexpected noise. She could've sworn she heard a groan coming from the bed which housed Ms. Weasley and Mr. Malfoy.

~ooOoo~

Ginny blushed. "I can't believe we're really doing this…"

Their discussion on Dumbledore had gone quickly; Ginny had the expected hero-worship, whereas Draco figured that Dumbledore was just as manipulative and self-serving as Voldemort, only at least Voldemort was honest about it. In the end, Ginny had agreed with him so long as Draco could see that Dumbledore was at least putting a front of helping people and avoiding violence.

However, because that one went quickly, all the sooner they were at the next icon: sex.

Draco smirked. He really did enjoy watching Ginny squirm.

"What's so bad about sex, Weasley?" he asked, falling back into his old habit of using her last name. She merely blushed in response.

"There's nothing…BAD about it, I guess…" she struggled to say the words. "But I don't see why people are so free, so casual with it."

Draco snorted. "If both people want it, why not? It's fun and a great way to relieve stress. Even better than Quidditch."

"But aren't you worried about catching something? Screaming scrotal pox doesn't seem like a laughing matter to me! And if you haven't noticed, my family has zero problems with fertility."

"All right, I'll give you that one," Draco conceded. "But you do know there are charms you can do, both before sex to make sure your partner is clean, and after to prevent anything from taking hold? And potions and things will prevent pregnancy. Hell, Pansy has a blood-charm on her that won't allow her to conceive until she's married."

"But even with those, sex should be special," Ginny protested. "That's why I'm going to wait until I get married."

"Sex can be meaningful without emotion behind it. Half of my allies in Slytherin are because they know that if I can take care of them in bed, I'll probably be willing to on the battlefield. Scratch my back, I'll scratch yours, kind of thing. Besides, haven't you heard that saying 'Don't buy the broom before you've had a test flight'?"

Ginny groaned.

~ooOoo~

Madame Pomfrey was keeping an owl-eye on her two charges. The groan she heard earlier was definitely not imagined, and she'd since seen the pair move and make other noises, sure signs they'd be waking up soon.

The florid blush that swept across Ms. Weasley's face was a mystery though.

~ooOoo~

They had finally reached the last icon, that of Lord Voldemort. They hadn't noticed it with earlier icons, but this one seemed to have grown since they last saw it; it was twice, perhaps even three times as big as it had been. Ginny suppressed a shudder as she looked up at his snarling face.

"Eurgh, how can you think that _THAT_ is anything to follow? His entire body language screams evil."

Draco sighed. "I'm just glad I only have to defend myself to you once more. Maybe after this one we'll get the hell out of here."

Ginny just looked at him expectantly.

"Fine, yes, I agree, he does look evil, and is in no small way batshit crazy."

"So why the hell would you join him?" Ginny looked triumphant; it looked to her like this would be over quickly.

"Ginny, you don't get it. Yes, he's batshit crazy, but he's the only one out there willing to fight for what is probably the most important cause. Think about this; the wizarding world—we're small, smaller than the muggle population, and that is a problem. If they find out about us, we're dead, full stop. At the very least, what will happen to the old families, the old traditions? Half of the students at Hogwarts will never experience a traditional wizarding wedding or coming of age or naming, because their parents and grandparents let go of the old ways."

"Yeah," Ginny interrupted. "But what does that have to do with Muggles? My parents like Muggles, but I had my coming of age when I turned fifteen."

"Mudbloods," he began, but rescinded at Ginny's glare. "Fine, _muggleborns_ are part of the problem. They don't know the traditions, and rather than try to learn, they just want to bring in Muggle things to make our lives 'easier.' You haven't sat through Muggle Studies with Granger; every week she's blathering on about fellytision or mobiles, whatever the hell those are, saying they'd make things _better_."

"Wait, you take Muggle Studies?"

Draco rolled his eyes. "My father thought it would soften the image; after all, if we know about Muggles that means no one can accuse us of mindless hatred. Now we have _reasons_ to want them gone."

Ginny had to concede to that one, even if she didn't agree with his reasoning.

"Anyway, with all these muggleborns and their families moving into the wizarding world, not only are more outsiders learning about us, but more 'insiders' are forgetting the old ways. What the Dark Lord stands for is protecting those old ways. If he has to use violence to achieve that, so be it."

Ginny was silent for a minute. "But…"

"But why is that so important to you?" she continued. "How on earth can you place tradition over human lives?" She was near tears.

"I don't; I really don't," Draco said adamantly. "I wish we could make the point without violence. Sure, I'll beat up a kid, what self-respecting Slytherin wouldn't, but torture? Murder? I vomited once as a kid when I saw my father come home with blood on his robes. It disgusted me. But Ginny, the Malfoys are an old, proud family; probably the oldest family. We're powerful, both magically and politically, and part of that is because of those old ways. And I'm the only heir; I _have_ to protect my family. And if that means giving the Dark Lord my allegiance, so be it."

Ginny nodded sadly. "I think I see now. It's awful, it's tragic, but you're doing what you have to to protect what's really important to you, and you see Voldemort as your only option. I guess that makes sense. But can't you see that there must be another option? You grew up sheltered by tradition. I grew up in a family that was fascinated by muggles and their technology—I remember being so excited the first time Hermione let me use her phone. Imagine a way to talk to someone a long way away without getting soot in your hair! And just because you don't see it doesn't mean all muggleborns dismiss tradition. Maybe Hogwarts needs a Wizarding Studies class to go hand-in-hand with Muggle Studies, to teach muggleborns all the things that we purebloods grow up knowing."

Draco eyed her up. "So you're thinking _compromise_ is our solution?"

Ginny nodded. "It's got to be better than genocide, don't you think? And did you know that Voldemort isn't even a pureblood himself? His dad was a muggle. A bit hypocritical, don't you think?"

Draco smiled a bit at that. "You did hear me refer to him as batshit crazy earlier, didn't you? Anyway, I see what you're saying about compromise. I doubt it would work now, but maybe if this war is ever over…"

"And I see why you joined him," Ginny stated. "I always could see how family was important to you, the name if nothing else, and you backing him up was just to protect that, to protect everything you've ever known. Can't agree, but I can't fault it, either."

Movement above them caught their eyes and both looked upward in time to see the Voldemort icon shrinking to nothingness.

~ooOoo~

"Would everyone please calm down?" Madame Pomfrey's voice carried over the din in the hospital wing. As the two students' movements and noises grew more frequent, she had made the decision to call in their families. Although she had intended for only parents to be present, the crowd was the same as it was that first day. Fourteen friends and family members were crowded into the room along with the two heads of house and Professor Dumbledore.

The room silenced and followed Pomfrey's gaze to the students, whose eyelids had begun to flicker, like someone who was merely dreaming. Narcissa Malfoy reached out for her son's hand and grasped it.

"Come on, Draco, come back to Mother," she said, a note of hope audible in her tone for the first time in weeks. He groaned in response, and shortly after him, so did Ginny.

"That's right, doll," Arthur Weasley coached his daughter. "Come back to us."

She let out a soft sigh and barely audible after that, "Dad?"

~ooOoo~

**Thank you so much for reading! I think this is twice as long as the previously longest chapter, hopefully that makes up for the wait. **

_**Screaming scrotal pox**_** came from some Harry/Draco fanfiction which unfortunately slips my mind right now. Basically HD are together against their will and are being taunted by some Slytherins. Harry casts a spell on the ringleader to give him Screaming Scrotal Pox, which I thought was brilliant, and seemed like a wonderful name for a wizarding STI. If you can tell me the name of this story, I'd be eternally grateful and actually give proper credit here.**

**Review thanks go to: Orangepigeon19, writeyourlove, roni2010, Smiles012, Jene, missmyrtlemay, eterna-romantica03**

**Thanks also go to the five of you who have this listed as a favorite, and the nineteen who have it on Story Alerts. **


End file.
